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Public Television Press Release The Remarkable Red Hat Society Premieres on Public Television Mother’s Day 2007 The Remarkable Red Hat Society (www.remarkableredhatsociety.org) is a one-hour broadcast documentary that will be released to public television stations around the country for Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 13, 2007. Fred Cohen, Creative Presentations (www.cpresents.com), is the Executive Producer of the documentary. American Public Television (www.aptonline.org) is the national distributor. The presenting PBS station is KCSM-TV (www.kcsm.org) in San Mateo, California. The Remarkable Red Hat Society documentary traces a fantastic story of how a group of five friends, dressed up in red and purple, galvanized millions of women who were looking for something more in their lives. From the first tea party in Fullerton, California in 1998, to opening its first “Hatquarters” just 3 years later, producer and director Fred Cohen weaves insights from noted aging experts, book publishers and sassy Red Hatters themselves, to create a colorful history of this remarkable generation. The film features diverse Red Hat chapters and explores how “Red Hatting” is redefining antiquated notions of what older women look like today. From finding new friends, to supporting those grieving over a loss, to improving their health and well-being, to mentoring younger women and taking on new challenges, Red Hatters are only beginning to rewrite the role of a modern older woman through camaraderie, friendship, sisterhood and bonding. According to founder and Queen
Mother, Sue Ellen Cooper, "The Red Hat Society began as a result
of a few women deciding to greet middle age with verve, humor and élan.
We believe silliness is the comedy relief of life, and since we are all
in it together, we might as well join red-gloved hands and go for the
gusto together. Underneath the frivolity, we share a bond of affection,
forged by common life experiences and a genuine enthusiasm for wherever
life takes us next." The Red Hat Society (www.redhatsociety.com) is often referred to fondly as a "dis-organization," though we have been forced to impart a degree of order to our operations. It was inadvertently begun by Sue Ellen Cooper of Fullerton, California when she and a few friends took inspiration from a popular poem entitled "Warning" by Jenny Joseph, which begins "When I am an old woman..." Since the poem mentions wearing a red hat and purple attire, she and her friends formed a group that met on a regular basis for tea in their red hats and purple dresses—in public, of course. American Public Television (www.aptonline.org) develops and delivers valued program choices and services in partnership with America's public television community. For over 44 years, American Public Television has been a prime source of programming for the nation's public television stations. KCSM-TV (www.kcsm.org) is located in the San Francisco Bay Area, the heart of the fifth largest television and radio market in the United States with the potential of reaching an audience of more than 6 million people. KCSM TV broadcasts 24 hours a day and is a member of PBS.
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